I'm not here to get on anyone's case for how they choose to make their diet. In many ways I admire vegans because of their dedication particularly if they choose this lifestyle of of an interest for protecting animals. I am NOT vegan. I like meat and I likely always will. Protein is a very important aspect of bodybuilding and well, there is no better and more efficient way of obtaining it than with meat. It CAN be achieved with a vegan diet, but you are going to have to eat a LOT in order to get the daily protein needs of someone seeking gains.
That's not really what this is about though. This is about the fact that a lot of people out there think that just because they are eating something vegan, that it is somehow magically good for you or at least better than a meat alternative and in many cases, much worse for you from a caloric and nutritional standpoint.
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The other day a vegetarian (not vegan) friend of mine told me that I absolutely must try this falafel pita wrap at a local place that is near both of our apartments. I like to take advice from friends so I said I would give it a go. I didn't do any research about what I would be consuming and just blindly walked into ordering this sandwich of sorts which of course, contained no meat.
First off, I found it amusing how different the advertised product was from what I actually received but I think that almost every restaurant is guilty of this so no worries there, this is expected.
The falafel pita wrap was actually very tasty and I could tell while I was eating it that it might be a little too tasty to be at all good for me. It was later that I was shocked to see that this "healthy" lunch of mine was probably the worst thing, calorically speaking, that I have eaten in quite some time that didn't come in a brown bottle.
So according to the restaurant's website this healthy sandwich tipped the scales at 500 calories, which is more than a Big Mac... I frequently use the Big Mac as an example because it is something that I think basically everyone views as being bad for you. The Big Mac IS bad for you but believe it or not, this healthy vegan sandwich is worse and also doesn't have anywhere near the protein needs that I require from a meal.
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When I am cutting or trying to lose body fat percentage, I try to keep my daily carbohydrate intake to under 50 grams per day - which is almost impossible to accomplish if you are eating any sort of bread. Somehow the industry convinced people that "pita" is not bread when it definitely is. In fact, it has more carbohydrates than most regular bread does and I have no idea why that is the case it just simply is a fact. There might be more carbs in there from the breading on the falafel, which is deep fried and perhaps something in the Tzatiki sauce. I really don't have any idea but the fact of the matter is that this healthy lunch option, which is what it and most other vegan food is presented as being, is anything but.
Now I have to do more cardio in order to accommodate this massive influx of carbs that I accidentally had. I got on my friend's case for recommending this to me after I found this out and he kind of laughed almost like he was setting me up in the first place. I hate cardio lately, so I am going to have to find a way to get back at him.
The point here is that there are a lot of diet lies out there and one of the biggest and trendiest ones at the moment is that vegan somehow equates to healthy. While I am happy that there is no added processed sugar and a lot of veggies in this wrap, I am not pleased about the fact that this company, and many other ones like it completely conceal the very high carbohydrate and calorie values that are on their menu.
Just because it is vegan doesn't mean it is healthy! This is a particularly dangerous ground for anyone trying to gain lean muscle via bodybuilding regimens because vegan food is likely to be severely lacking in protein.
If you are vegan, please understand that I am not attacking you and I actually admire your dietary discipline. I just think that people, including me, need to be a bit more careful when making food choices.
From elite athlete in my 20's to fat-ass in my 30's to the strongest I have been in my life in my 40's. There are no shortcuts... you need discipline and the willingness to put in the work!
I might not be as particular as you @normie.fitness in terms of protein, and other specifics. But when I did cut my weight from 76 to 59-60kgs (current weight), I looked at calorie count all the time. I've managed to remember all kcal for the usual food I take. 😅 I'm surprised by what you've shared above. Guess, it's still best to look at the nutritional facts. But people rarely do.
calorie cutting is obviously the most important thing. most trainers and weight loss professionals say that all weight loss is 80% diet, 20% exercise yet so many people don't see this.
Tracking calories is very important and that is probably why you achieved such great success!